The present invention relates generally to improvements in electrical input/output (I/O) connectors. More particularly, the present invention relates to printed circuit board connectors with improved connector shielding.
In the field of signal transmission technology, electrical signals are being transmitted at ever increasing speeds. Along with the desire to transmit information at faster rates, the industry has also seen the need to reduce the size of hardware employed so as to occupy less component space. In order to keep pace with these improvements, the interconnection technology, has also undergone significant changes.
Continued improvement in connection technology is not without problems. When decreasing the size of electrical connectors while requiring the connectors to transmit signals at higher rates, shielding between adjacent conductive components of the connector becomes a factor which must be addressed. Additionally, as these components are normally used in close proximity to other electronic components, the individual connector components must also be shielded from electromagnetic interferences and radio-frequency interferences. These interferences can adversely affect the performance levels of the connectors.
In the field of cable terminations, compact electrical connectors are known which provide for the termination of discrete insulated conductors of a multi-conductor cable. These connectors typically include an insulative connector housing supporting a plurality of electrical contacts having insulation displacing contact portions. These connectors also feature an internal contact shield to shield individual contact pairs from adjacent contact pairs. The shield is a die cast metallic member having horizontal and vertical walls which intersect perpendicularly in xe2x80x9ccrossxe2x80x9d configurations to provide horizontal and vertical shielding of the contacts. The contact shield disclosed in these patents also includes an extended ground element for electrical engagement with the multi-conductor cable to maintain electrical ground continuity between the cable and the contact shield. Such a connector is shown and disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,122, issued Jun. 22, 2000, entitled xe2x80x9cElectrical Connector Having An Improved Connector Shield And a Multi-Purpose Strain Reliefxe2x80x9d and is incorporated by reference herein for all purposes.
While adequately providing for enhanced shielding between electrical components of a cable connector, the connector art has not successfully provided both internal shielding and external shielding in an input/output printed circuit board environment.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved electrical connector which permits connection of a printed circuit while maintaining electrical shielding as between multiple pairs of contacts within the connector.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector for a printed circuit board where multiple pairs of the contacts are shielded from external interferences such as EMI and RFI.
In the efficient attainment of these and other objects, the present invention provides a printed circuit board connector. The connector includes an elongate conductive housing having a printed circuit board mounting surface and an interconnection surface. The conductive housing defines a plurality of bounded compartments adjacent the interconnection surface. An insulative support member is provided having individual support elements resident within the bounded compartments of the conductive housing. A pair of elongate electrical contacts are supported by each of the support elements. Each contact includes a solder tail at one end for termination to the printed circuit board and an interconnection portion at the other end for mating electrical connection. The interconnection portions are resident within the bounded compartments for establishing electrical shielded isolation between the interconnection portions of the adjacent pairs of contacts. The printed circuit board mounting surface of the conductive housing extends in bounded registry about the contact solder tails for establishing electrical shielding from external electrical interferences.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the bounded compartments of the conductive housing extend from the interconnection surface of the housing to the printed circuit board surface for establishing electrically shielded isolation between adjacent pairs of contacts along the length thereof. The present invention may be practiced in either a straight through connector or a right angle connector.